Mobile World Congress is just around the corner. Mauj will once again be present at the largest mobile event in the world. To know more or set up a meeting please write to us onbusiness@mauj.com

Mauj Mobile (www.mauj.com) is a global mobile media company with leadership in content and app marketplaces. With over 20mn monthly unique users, Mauj is one of the fastest growing mobile companies in India. Mauj has interests in two key verticals – entertainment and edutainment.

In entertainment, the company operates Mobango (www.mobango.com), which is one of the largest independent appstores in the world for free apps, games and videos. In edutainment, Mauj runs Appystore.in (www.appystore.in) which provides subscription based curated content for kids up to 7 years of age. Mauj Mobile is a recognized company with awards such as Red Herring and mBillionth Awards for Innovation. The company is part of People Group, which also owns leading brands such as Shaadi.com and Makaan.com, and has made investments in over 50 startups.

If you don’t want a list of software engineering feats as long as your arm simply to squeeze an additional half hour out of your battery, then we’re here to tell you the single biggest secret to extending your battery life. A single setting is all it takes. The one trick you need to know to save battery life on Android is…

Limit your screen output

The screen is the biggest power sucker on your Android device, so the more you can do to limit its demands on your battery, the better. Simply making your screen timeout setting as short as humanly possible can have a significant effect on your battery, as can dropping the display brightness.

Screen timeout

What is screen timeout, I hear you ask? Screen timeout is the amount of time your screen stays active once you’ve stopped using it. By default it is often set to a longer time than is necessary and most people don’t ever think to change it.

Personally, I can live with 15 seconds, for others it’s 30 seconds. But it doesn’t take a math genius to realize both of these are orders of magnitude better than two minutes. Go to Settings > Display > Sleep

Brightness

While you’re at it, drop your screen brightness to as low as you can possibly handle, and make sure auto-brightness is turned off, as all that adjusting of the brightness consumes a lot of battery. You can always manually bump up your brightness when you need it (and then straight back down afterward). Go to Settings > Display > Brightness

Ok, so it was really two secrets, but these two simple display settings will make a significant difference to your Android battery life. Now you just have to look at it less.

Communication is one of the bedrocks of human civilization. The tools we use – voice and face muscles, smoke signals, quills and ink, emojis – start out as delivery systems for existing ideas. Without exception, those tools end up influencing the ideas themselves. For proof, look no further than the impact of technology on the nuclear family over the past hundred years.

Recent research from the University of Kansas looks at the way technological advancements influence interpersonal communication, with a focus on familial relationships. The study tested whether the number of media used by families to interact with each other altered the way they related.

Researchers asked 367 adults between the ages of 18 and 29 about the types of communication they used to stay in touch with their parents, how regularly they communicated, and how satisfied they were with the relationship.

The young adults reported using a wide range of communication tools to stay in touch with mom and dad. Alongside the landlines and cell phone calls, a surprisingly diverse array of methods are used for intergenerational communication, including Snapchat, online gaming networks, video calls, instant messaging – and of course texting. On average, participants used one of three methods of communication when talking to parents.

Researchers found a positive change in relationship satisfaction as more forms of communication were used. Youngsters only using one method of communication – irrespective of what that method was – were found to experience less relationship satisfaction than their peers who used three or four methods.

This makes perfect sense. We’re all multi-taskers now. At any one time we have a couple of email accounts open on our desktop browser, ready to pounce on whatever work-related issue or social tidbit comes our way. That same browser is probably creaking under the weight of countless cats, lists and celebrity trivia masquerading as news. There may even be some bona fide news buried on the 17th tab.

At least these media can be consumed passively. Things start getting hectic when you consider all the two-way communication systems we’re negotiating.

You’re logged into Skype so your dad can call and your sister’s pinging you on Facebook. Your niece has set you up with WhatsApp because that’s what she uses (but you don’t quite get it as much as you pretend to). Add to that the constant barrage of retail bargain alerts sending your smartphone into a vibrant spin and the fact you occasionally get an actual telephone call, not to mention texting and… blimey, a postcard just floated onto the mat. Fancy that.

With our attentions spread so thin, it behooves families to be available on as many devices as possible. But the default channel for cross-generational contact is SMS, and the influence it’s had on the tenor of our conversations is obvious. Less formal than other written forms, texting is closer in tone to spoken language. It’s relaxed, telegraphic; less reflective than a letter, perhaps, but more accessible.

Linguist John McWhorter coined the phrase ‘fingered speech’ in a 2013 TED talk, citing the example of “LOL” which no longer functions as a direct acronym for “laugh out loud” but a “pragmatic particle” – an expression not semantically linked to the context of the message, but rather an indicator of the speaker’s attitude. Like averting your eyes from a Silverback’s gaze, it sends the message that you mean no harm. You’re a friend.

Despite the naysayers who view every SMS ping as a miniature death knell for language, this is clearly a form of progress. Before text messaging – and its errant offspring, the tweet – written language could only avoid being misconstrued by becoming denser and more complex. The acronyms, idioms and emoticons of text speak have reversed that trend, and though it may not suit grammar cops and syntax pedants, brevity and clarity are far more critical for effective communication than a blind adherence to “proper” form.

If smiley faces and acronyms are helping modern families stay in touch when they’re miles apart, who is anyone to argue? Using new technologies to communicate with the coop-flown may take some work for the more technophobic parent, but as the KU research shows, it’s well worth the effort.

Last year represented a tipping point in mobile commerce investment, so as we begin a new year, we wanted to take stock by updating our m-commerce market map and offering our predictions for 2015.

A recent report by Digi-Capital estimates that VCs invested $4.2 billion in m-commerce from Q3 2013 to Q3 2014, far surpassing the $1.2 billion invested in 2013 and the $829 million invested in the previous two years combined. While much of this capital was poured into a few multibillion dollar juggernauts like Uber and Pinterest, it has also continued to fuel an explosion of m-commerce startups, including several in new subcategories.

In marketplaces, startups like EatWith and Feastly are betting they can replicate the success of P2P models like Airbnb and RelayRides to disrupt the $600 billion U.S. restaurant industry with in-home dining experiences. Meanwhile, On-Demand Services are emerging in several new subcategories, particularly in dense urban areas with high-frequency use cases. ZIRX and Luxe make commercial parking easier with on-demand valet services that let drivers drop cars off wherever they want, with optional add-on services like gas refills and car washes included.

And B2B models like Keychain Logistics, Cargomatic, and Deliv are revolutionizing logistics at every part of the supply chain. Finally, in app-based services, there’s been a proliferation of new businesses focused on mobile health and wellness from Rise and Kurbo Health in nutrition to Lantern, Talkspace, and 7 Cups of Tea in mental health, among many others.

These startups are leveraging smartphones to intercept users in the course of their daily routines and help them to lead healthier, happier lives. We also added education and productivity, two established app-based service categories that did not appear in the first version of the market map.

Given that mobile devices only account for 1 percent of the $3.25T U.S. retail spending market, m-commerce is clearly still in its infancy, and we expect continued rapid growth in 2015.

A year of reckoning for on-demand services

If there was one m-commerce theme that summed up 2014, it was the explosion in on-demand services. In the last 12 months, many articles have been written about the “Uberification” of our economy, with Steve Schlafman’s deck published in April providing a helpful summary.

This trend has been led by Uber itself, whose value skyrocketed from a few billion dollars at the beginning of 2014 to $17 billion in June and $41 billion in its most recent $1.2 billion round. Yet there have been plenty of on-demand services that have failed to replicate Uber’s success, including many of Uber’s competitors in the ridesharing space that have struggled to demonstrate either exponential growth or positive contribution margins.

At issue for some on-demand services is not only intense competition in certain subcategories, but that their value proposition is not dramatically better than that of incumbents.

For example, in the home cleaning and laundry service categories, the benefits provided by a mobile application are less dramatic relative to ridesharing because these services are typically not delivered on a truly on-demand basis.

In subcategories where the market size is too small, the capital required to scale is too large, or the improvement relative to incumbent models is too marginal, we expect there to be a significant shakeout in 2015 as VC investment in on-demand services slows down and startups with no discernable path to profitability sell or go out of business.

The rise of visual commerce

The web is an increasingly visual experience, and it’s no secret that companies have capitalized on this trend by using photo rich content to attract large user bases. Pinterest is perhaps the poster child of this movement, having amassed 60-70 million users that are now being monetized through the use of promoted pins. Similarly, e-commerce companies such as Zulily have learned that high-quality photos consistently boost conversion rates.

On mobile, photos are even more important given small screen sizes, and contextual commerce companies large and small are increasingly using photos not just to acquire users but to monetize them.

According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted last year, 18 percent of smartphone users were using Instagram and 9 percent were using Snapchat as of October 2013. And just as Pinterest did on the web, these apps are creating new forms of visual advertising to capitalize on their user traffic.

Instagram launched video ads in October, letting brands directly target users in their feeds rather than relying on traffic to their corporate accounts, and expectations are that the service will introduce commercial transaction capabilities. Similarly, Snapchat released its first “snapvertisements,” which are interspersed in a user’s story feed and disappear forever after a single viewing just like ordinary messages.

We expect the trend toward visual commerce to expand as Facebook and Twitter build infrastructure to support transactions and other m-commerce startups increasingly rely on photos and videos to attract and monetize users.

The proliferation of “specialty” app-based services

In the same way that offline commerce has seen the rise of specialty retail, the App-Based Services category is also experiencing a proliferation of startups targeting niche markets, with the potential to expand into larger platforms.

Given the constraints imposed by mobile, it has become increasingly clear that App-Based Service startups are better off doing a great job meeting one need rather than trying to do a good job meeting many needs. We see this pattern in mobile health, where Glow and Ovuline have amassed highly engaged female user bases with initial products focused entirely on personalized fertility tracking and pregnancy support, and in personal finance, where apps like ActiveHours and MileIQ have achieved impressive app store rankings despite targeting narrow initial use cases in payday loans and business mileage tax deductions, respectively.

Going into 2015, we expect the trend toward specialization to expand into many other app-based service subcategories.

Annual m-commerce investment activity has risen more than 10x over the last few years. Every quarter, entirely new subcategories of mobile-enabled services are emerging, and we expect the momentum to continue in 2015 as VCs invest behind trends such as visual commerce and specialized app-based services. At the same time, in crowded categories like on-demand services, we predict that competition and heavy capital requirements will force consolidation over time, with players that have established positive contribution margins and favorable customer acquisition economics emerging as winners.

In 2014, China-based Alibaba had a record-breaking IPO on the U.S. stock market, China surpassed the U.S. in terms of purchasing power, and the country earned itself a new position in the world economy.

But China’s not the only emerging region we need to pay attention to. Other countries are quickly following China’s lead and solidifying their positions in the technology marketplace.

Looking at data from AppFlood, a global programmatic mobile ads platform from my company Papaya, we’ve seen significant rises in ad spend in Latin America, Asia and Eastern Europe. When we drill down further, we see massive potential in Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia and India when it comes to becoming the next powerhouse in the world economy.

Observations of the regions

For the last two quarters, we have seen an increase in the proportion of mobile ad spending by Eastern Europe, Asia and Latin America compared to worldwide spending.

Asia has increased its share of ad spend from 26% to 37%. Latin America’s proportion of ad spend has also increased from 14% to 22%.

Amongst these geographies, North America saw a huge decline in their ad spend. Its share plummeted from one-third of the world’s total spending to an alarming rate of 10%. Before jumping the gun and deciding that Latin America and Asia are the answer, it’d be good to take a closer look at the performance of individual countries.

Rising economies to look out for

The U.S., Brazil, Indonesia and India make up half the world’s ad spending. The U.S. is expected, and Brazil isn’t surprising following the World Cup and the turbocharge it gave the economy, but Indonesia and India are surprising. These two countries had a gradual increase in their spending over the year, with India cutting a larger piece of the pie with growth from 8% to 14% and Indonesia increasing its ad spend proportion from 5% to 9%. China also still maintains a steady increase in the proportion of ad spending in the world.

So what’s next?

From the data above, both the under-the-radar and ‘popular’ countries appear to be gaining gradual control over the 195 countries comprising the mobile ad market.

Ad spending in the U.S. may have varied in these two quarters, but it is still a country that dominates in mobile and tech developments. Additionally, being the birthplace of ad networks such as Google Adwords and Facebook’s Audience Network, the U.S. will continue to be a place brimming with advancements in the infrastructure and usage of mobile advertising.

On the other side of the Pacific Ocean, China remains a strong country to invest in, especially in its mobile and tech industry. The country leads in the e-commerce industry worldwide, and its sheer size provides the world’s largest smartphone consumer market. As the digital market evolves, China’s online consumption habits will continue to change accordingly, making China a place with boundless potential for mobile advertisers and investors.

The under-rated regions

Although Brazil is growing quickly, it doesn’t grab the spotlight like the U.S. or China. However, EMarketer expects Brazil and Mexico to contribute extensively to Latin America’s ever-growing smartphone base, where they will contribute 10.9 and 6.1 million smartphone users this year respectively. Mexico and Brazil are countries to watch this coming year.

Brazilians also access the Internet more often on their mobile phone than on the desktop.This suggests a possible influx of resources by investors to monetize this trend. Eventually, it is expected that the ad revenue in this region will continue to grow as smartphone penetration and mobile usage increase.

Looking at the Asian countries, India and Indonesia represent underdogs in the advertising market. Yet, they have grabbed a significant portion of the world’s ad expenditure.

Indian smartphone users spent the greatest amount of time on their devices. India is third in the world in terms of smartphone subscription (117 million users). Coupled with locals’ willingness to pay more for a better mobile experience, this emerging market has potential to experience high growth rates in the mobile and tech industry.

Indonesia, the only Southeast Asian country highlighted, is another country with huge potential. Though only 24% of the population uses a smartphone, it is the most populous country in the region. With the changing habits of locals and adoption of smartphones, Indonesia is poised to become a region with booming tech improvements and mobile ad revenues in the near future.

A quick glance, shows that the U.S. and China currently control the global mobile ad market. However, upon closer inspection, we see that countries such as Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia and India are slowly creeping in and capturing an extensive amount of the market share.

Although we think of them as off-the-radar emerging regions, these countries could become powerhouse economies sooner than you think.

As you know that we have revamped our QA and App publishing process, this will make sure that the best content is available on Mobango for our millions of users thus yielding great downloads for your apps on our store. While featuring an app on Mobango, following points are taken into consideration:

Developers with Genuine Credentials

Do register using your name or the name of your company on Mobango. Ideally users should be able to also identify this name through Google search or social media.

Usage of an active email Id to connect with you

Your email is an important medium of communication between you and Mobango. You get the latest updates, announcements, newsletters from us. Your Email Id helps us to reach out to you with the performance of your apps to enhance your presence on our store and increase your downloads in return.

Upload Original Content

Upload original apps which are developed by you. We do not encourage developers who upload third party content unless you are a recognized aggregator or media company and you have spoken with us about the status of copyright ownership. Where we are unclear about the ownership rights, we may choose not to publish that content or even if we choose to publish it, will rank very low in our Apprank which makes the chances of featuring your content negligible. In extreme cases, we may remove the developer account in entirety and not allow such developers to upload in the future through a blacklist process. Most importantly, users don’t want content they do not trust and that impacts our core customer proposition and experience.

Usage of proper Metadata to describe the App and its USP

Make sure the Title, Description and Keywords used for your app are written in grammatically correct English with no spelling errors. This directly resulting in less downloads. We prefer English as a language and not other languages given the global user base of Mobango.

The USP (unique selling, preposition) of your app should be directly communicated with the user. Try and communicate the USP in the first 250 characters – what the app does for the user, make sure it is crisp and perfect which will excite users and make them download your apps.

Attractive Thumbnail and Screenshots

Thumbnail and Screenshots are your app’s first impression for the user before he installs your app. Make sure you choose the best screenshots to show minimum three different aspects of your app. We welcome as many screen shots as you could create. Blurred images or unclear images on apps could significantly delay the publishing or even prevent the app from getting published. Along with the vertical screenshots, Developers can now upload horizontal screenshots and also add a URL of their app video from Youtube which gives added advantage and displays their app more efficiently.

Genuine Build files for a great user experience
Whatever has been promised to the user through the Metadata and the screenshots should be delivered in the App. The App should work as described and shown in the screen shots. The apps with inconsistencies in their metadata, screenshots and the actual file will be rejected.

The build file name and the title of the app should be related, this helps in identification of the file enabling quick review and publishing of the app.
Even if Content is the King, users are the ones who make it sit in its throne, hence never spoil the user experience. The future of your app completely depends on what user experience does it provides to the user.

Avoid Explicit or Nude content and content that could incite hatred on any grounds

Content that shows nude models or sexually explicit content is illegal in India and in several countries that we operate in. Further our audience is not looking for such content and there are other publishers who may appreciate such content. Such content will not get published on Mobango.

Apps containing references or comments about any religion or religious group or culture or those that are defamatory, offensive, mean-spirited or likely to expose the targeted group to harm or violence will be immediately rejected.

Yesterday a report surfaced from The Information claiming that the long-rumored Google wireless service is nearly upon us under the name Project Nova, piggybacking off of Sprint and T-Mobile’s networks as an MVNO. We have to wonder, what exactly does Google hope to accomplish by entering into this space? Obviously the biggest goal could be disrupting the cellular industry, but in what ways would Google be able to accomplish this?

While we have no way of knowing for sure what Google plans, we can certainly look at the limited evidence around us and speculate a little. With that in mind, let’s take a look at what a Google-ran carrier might look like and how it could potentially change the game.

Google Wireless: the technology behind it

So how might Google’s service differ from traditional carrier services and other MVNOs? That’s a good question.

While initial reports haven’t given us much to go on, yesterday Android Police reported that this isn’t the first time they’ve heard of Project Nova. Reportedly they received a tip last year that they hesitated to report on due to a lack of further information. Based on this tip, Nova could be a data-only service that uses data for everything including calls. Furthermore it would reportedly offer unlimited data, though it would push calls and other operations over to Wi-Fi whenever possible

The original AP tip also claimed that Google Voice would serve as the backbone of Nova’s data plans, though that was before GV features started integrating into Hangouts. In a nutshell, that means Google Wireless (or whatever they call the final product) could give you a data-only plan and a voice number that would work through Hangouts. The end-product would be an experience that acts a lot like a traditional carrier and yet relies on cellular data to make all the magic happen.

If this sounds familiar, that’s because the model described is very similar to Republic Wireless, with the biggest change being the reliance on Google Hangouts for calls. This is Google though, and that means there has to be more to their service. After all, Google wouldn’t step into this space if they didn’t have a bigger ambition that goes beyond what we’ve already seen from competitors.

So what other kind of technologies might Google bring to the table, other than simply relying on a data-only MVNO model? According to the Wall Street Journal, Google has been lobbying the FCC to free up vast amounts of low-quality wireless spectrum. This type of spectrum can’t transport wireless signals across long distances, but Google could use the signals across smaller ranges (like specific cities) as a way to improve wireless networks. As Google said during a recent letter to the FCC, these frequencies could be used for “the next generation of unlicensed broadband services” or “entirely new technologies and innovations”.

Using a network of Google Fiber driven Wi-Fi and new technologies that potentially utilize higher-frequency spectrum, Google could provide a faster phone service that reverts to using Sprint and T-Mobile networks when folks are away from publicly available Wi-Fi networks.

What the plans might look like, where they might be offered

There’s quite a few ways that Google could go about this. First, it could offer its services for free as part of a Google Fiber subscription, making the use of Fiber-backed public and private networks free for their wireless service. Second, they could make it dirt cheap and maybe even somehow ad advertising to augment costs, though we have a feeling consumers wouldn’t care for this ad-driven approach too much.

We also have to wonder if their MVNO would be prepaid, postpaid or come in more than one flavor. Given the “open nature” of Google (in most things), we’d say that they likely won’t subsidize their devices too heavily, if at all, and so a no-contract model is probably more likely. Regardless, at the very least we can expect pricing to be more aggressive than most other carriers out there.

As for availability? I personally have the feeling that the rollout will be limited, especially if the service is tied into special technology that goes beyond a typical MVNO setup. Obviously this is speculation, but we shouldn’t be too surprised if Google targets the same cities that currently offer Google Fiber — though it would be amazing if they end up having a wider launch of the service that goes beyond a few metro areas.

The phones

Here’s an interesting question: what phones would Google support? Would they allow you to bring any compatible GSM (for T-Mo) or compatible CDMA (for Sprint) device? Would they offer their own products? It seems like a safe bet that the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9 Wi-Fi would be made available, but that’s a pretty limited selection. That means Google either needs to embrace the BYOD model, create new GPe devices, or open up its service to OEM-skinned products from Motorola, Samsung, HTC and others.

We also have to wonder how the network would work, considering it is using both a CDMA-based and a GSM-based carrier. Would customers choose either a Sprint-based plan or a T-mobile-based plan? It is also possible that Google could use both networks simultaneously, though that would mean relying on LTE only (as legacy frequencies like 3G would add extra headaches) and ensuring all phones that are compatible with the service play nicely with all necessary frequencies.

Possible killer weapons

Quicker updates

There are many times when unlocked or global devices start receiving updates significantly quicker than carriers, with AT&T and Verizon being two of the worst offenders when it comes to update timeliness. While it seems obvious that Nexus device on Google Wireless would get extremely quick updates, what if Google did the same with OEM-skinned devices that were compatible with its network?

A US network that offered updates nearly as quickly as unlocked devices? If Google could actually pull this off, that would be amazing. That said, I’ll admit I’m not sure if the fact that Sprint and T-Mobile are providing the cellular network would get in the way of this or not. Still, I suspect that quicker updates would be just one of many weapons in Google’s arsenal.

Being more open, and near-bloat free

Another way that Google could stand out is by simply being more open, embracing the idea of custom ROMs, modding and keeping carrier bloatware to a minimum. If Google is simply utilizing services already tied into Android (such as Hangouts), Google’s service could be the most “pure” bloat free experience on the market.

Think of Nova as the “Nexus” of carriers

The Nexus program is designed to be a reference platform, not just for developers and modders, but for OEMs as well. The idea is that a Nexus device is showing what a Google-driven experience can and should look like, armed out of the box with the newest version of Android. The hope is that OEMs follow their example with their own OEM-skinned offerings.

I sincerely doubt that Google is getting involved with the wireless industry in order to just make money. This is just another way — alongside Project Loon and many others — to get more folks online and connected to their services. It also will hopefully serve as a shining example for carriers on how to make a consumer-friendly service that breaks conventions.

While T-Mobile is already doing its fair share to shake up the wireless industry, more innovative players in this space certainly can’t hurt any. Whether I personally think that Google can disrupt this industry? While they certainly have the means, I don’t think it will happen anytime soon — at least given the slow rollout we’ve seen with Google Fiber so far. What do you think, would you like to see Google get involved in the wireless game or are they best left sitting this one out? How to do you think Google might change up the wireless game?

One of Android’s best features is the ability to fully customize almost every aspect of your phone or tablet. The best place to see this customization in action is the home screen. Users have a plethora of icon packs, launchers, widgets, and wallpapers to choose from. All of these choices can lead to some amazingly beautiful (and amazingly awful) set-ups.

With all of these options you’d think home screens would be a giant mess of random configurations. That’s only partially true. We went through several “Share your home screen!” threads on Android Forums and found that most people set up their home screen in one of five ways. Even you, the person reading this right now. Don’t believe us? These are the five types of Android users and how they set up their home screen.

The Stock Jock

Who: The Stock Jock is someone who doesn’t do much to personalize their home screen. They could be new to Android and not know how to change things up, or maybe they just really like the way Samsung or Google do things. Whatever the reason may be, they are still rocking the original configuration and doing just fine. You can accomplish so much more when you aren’t changing your launcher every other day. Wait, what’s a launcher?

Item they order at McDonald’s: Happy Meal

Favorite beverage: Orange Hi-C

The Themer

Who: The Themer is someone who likes to get their hands dirty and make sure their phone looks like their phone. Maybe they stumbled upon Android Forums one day and discovered the world of Android modding. It starts with a simple icon pack. Harmless, right? Next thing you know they’re elbow deep in code trying to extract that perfect launcher. But now the wallpaper isn’t right! I’m so close to the perfect set-up!

The MinimalistWho: The Minimalist has been through the Themer phase. They’ve seen it all, and now it’s time to take things slow. Keep it simple. They have a keen eye for design, or at least that’s what they will tell you. The Minimalist is also a tad OCD about how things are set up. Every app and widget is meticulously themed and organized. Man, I would love to download this new app, but I just can’t make that icon work.

Item they order at McDonald’s: Hamburger

Favorite beverage: Water

The Hot ChickWho: The Hot Chick is the dude (or bro) that always has some random chick plastered on his home screen. This guy loves looking at beautiful women. He loves it so much that he decided he needed to see one every time he turns on his phone. Most people would feel too creepy or shy about putting scantily clad women on their home screen, but not The Hot Chick. Hey, have you seen that new pic of Emma Watson? It’s pretty great.

Item they order at McDonald’s: Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese

Favorite beverage: Surge

The Ugly Duckling

Who: The power of Android customization can sometimes fall in the wrong hands. Occasionally you will glance over at someone’s phone and see a glorious disaster of a home screen. The Ugly Duckling tried really hard to get the home screen looking just the way they want. Like the story of the ugly duckling, there is beauty in even the ugly things in life. You just have to wait long enough to see it. In the case of these home screens you only have to wait for the screen to turn off.

Item they order at McDonald’s: McRib

Favorite beverage: Crystal Pepsi

The great thing about Android is that all of these people can exist and be using basically the same OS. Open source software is a wonderful thing. Which one of these people are you? How do you like to set-up your home screen? Have you ever come across The Ugly Duckling? Let us know below!

With Android Auto coming soon to vehicles next year, the world will finally know what it is to have the power of Android (and Google Now) inside their car. The problem? First, you’ll need a compatible vehicle and after that, a device running Lollipop in order to enjoy Android’s latest innovation.

While this will soon be more common place as more devices find themselves upgraded to Lollipop and more Android Auto-ready vehicles begin rolling off the lot next year, the ideal solution would be to have Android Auto come pre-installed in your car.

Seems that could be Google’s next course of action for Android M, the next major Android release out of Mountain View. While a dessert name can’t be attached to it just yet, the folks at Reuters have gotten wind from 2 sources close to the matter that Android Auto will soon be built directly into your car’s dash — not simply mirror information on the vehicle’s infotainment system.

This may not sound like much of a benefit on the surface, but keep in mind that this would allow the Android OS to be truly tapped into a vehicle, possibly pulling up diagnostics and other data, in addition to media and navigation. Of course, Google would still need to convince automakers of the value Android Auto integration would bring, with sources saying more work needs to be done in terms of performance (and stability) before Google can expect any sort of adoption. Because cars are constantly being powered on and off, Android M would need to boot up near instantly before it could be practical as a car’s main OS.

Also — as we’ve seen with smartphone OEMs — auto makers too like to differentiate their product line from competitors. Having Android Auto inside a Honda and KIA could make additional manufacturers like Toyota hesitant about integrating it inside their vehicles, opting instead for Apple’s solution over Google’s.

I still remember my first gaming console. For months I was hooked on blocky 8-bit scenes with a repetitive soundtrack of bloops and bleeps. Back then the graphics were primitive, the choice of titles was limited, and gaming was strictly an indoors activity. Today, things are different.

We recently launched Nexus Player, the first streaming media and gaming device that brings Android to your TV. Thanks to thousands of games and free online multiplayer, Android is already the first choice for many casual and experienced gamers. And with Android now on screens big and small, you can sneak a quick game while you’re out on the road, then keep playing at home on your HDTV.

Nexus Player makes the perfect holiday gift for family fun and immersive play on the biggest screen in your home. Here’s a quick look at some upcoming titles and a round-up of recently-launched favorites.

Rayman Fiesta Run brings Ubisoft’s classic, wacky and lovable character Rayman to your living room. Jumping and rolling through this beautiful fantasy world looks incredible on your TV. And if you grew up like me, spending countless hours collecting video game stars and coins, you’ll quickly fall for this title with a Gamepad for Nexus Player.

New games are coming in every week and there are now more than 60 titles available on Google Play. Some of our favorite new arrivals include:

Bike Rivals: an adrenaline-packed stunt racing game that uses the Nexus Player remote
Prime World: Defenders: a classic tower defense game with awesome 3D graphics
Goat Simulator: because who hasn’t dreamt of causing chaos as a goat?

And coming soon:

NBA Jam: a classic, reborn – slam-dunk on your friends with multiple gamepads, phones and tablets
Valiant Hearts: a thoughtful warrior’s journey through World War I, realized as an action game

If you’re looking for a great way to spend the holidays, or to level up your love for Android gaming, grab the Nexus Player and Gamepad for Nexus Player in the Play Store. Nexus Player comes with Badland and a $20 Google Play credit that you can use for games, movies and more.